Defense Shines and Single-Game Records Set
St. John Fisher 37, Hartwick 14
The nationally-ranked St. John Fisher College program delivered a school-record 11 sacks on defense and scored 30 straight points to help secure a 37-14 victory over host Hartwick College on Saturday in a matchup between two undefeated teams. The Hawks and Cardinals came into the contest as the number one and number two ranked offenses in the Empire 8 Conference respectively but the Fisher defense was up for the challenge, holding the Hawks to just 197 yards of total offense.
With the win, Fisher, ranked 19th in the d3football.com poll, improves to 5-0 and 2-0 in the Empire 8 Conference, while Hartwick falls to 4-1, 1-1 respectively. The Cardinals are now the lone unbeaten team in the Empire 8 Conference.
Fisher, who led 14-7 at the half, took control of the game early in the third quarter. The Cardinals marched 63 yards on the opening drive, with the big play coming on a 58-yard hookup from Tyler Fenti to Kevin Francis who took it down to the Hartwick five yard line. Fisher had to settle for a 20-yard field goal from Brendan Carey to make it 17-7 four minutes into the quarter. FULL STORY
Salisbury 34, Buffalo State 6
The Salisbury University football team used another strong defensive performance and a stellar running game to claim its third straight win on Saturday afternoon, a 34-6 win against Buffalo State College.
The Salisbury defense came up with three interceptions, two from junior linebacker Steven Gamble and the other for senior safety Greg Stanton, limiting Buffalo State (2-4, 0-3 Empire 8 Athletic Conference) to its lowest point total and second-lowest offensive yardage output this season.
Offensively, the Sea Gulls (3-2, 2-0 Empire 8) were paced by junior quarterback Joey Jones, who ran for a game-high 121 yards and two touchdowns while sophomore Jerome Johnson added 110 rushing yards and a score. FULL STORY
Ithaca 17, Alfred 0
The Ithaca College football team dominated both sides of the ball in a 17-6 Homecoming win over Alfred on Saturday afternoon at Butterfield Stadium. The Bomber offense put together three long scoring drives that each covered more than five minutes and more than 70 yards. Ithaca's defense held Alfred to just six points, forced three turnovers, and the Saxons held the ball for less than 22 minutes. Alfred entered the game averaging nearly 32 points per game.
Junior quarterback Tom Dempsey made his first-career start and led the Bombers to a win. He is the 10th consecutive Ithaca quarterback to win his debut start. Dempsey was 14-for-20 passing for 166 yards and a touchdown. Running back Rakim Jones had career-best totals of 31 carries and 170 yards. Tene Samuto carried 11 times for 50 yards. FULL STORY
Utica 44, Frostburg 27
The Utica College football team broke nine different single game records, and snapped a two game slide, as the Pioneers topped host Frostburg State 44-27 in Empire 8 Conference action at Bobcat Stadium Saturday afternoon. Senior running back Jake Larson broke the school-record for touchdowns scored in a single game after turning in a five touchdown performance on 32 carries and 122 yards on the ground. Larson also became the College's all-time leader with 20 career rushing touchdowns.
Utica trailed 27-25 headed into the fourth quarter of play, but the Pioneers outscored host Frostburg 19-0 in the final 15 minutes of action to improve their record to 3-2 overall and 1-1 in the Empire 8. FULL STORY